"Ready?" Skitty asks, stepping back from the display. "Absolutely not, but…let's make it count!" I take a deep breath, then we unleash our moves onto the glass. It's horrifically loud, the sounds resonating down the hallway. But after a moment I can see it.

It's just the tiniest bit, but the thick glass starts to crack.

"What the—?" I vaguely hear Clobbopus yell in the distance. We've been heard…wow, who could have possibly predicted?

I hear Noibat try everything he can think of to slow him down. He's asking repeatedly what's happening, begging for protection, and possibly trying to convince Clobbopus that they should just run away. From the tone of his voice, it's clear Clobbopus is losing his patience. "Be a sign of strength for the place that's given you so much! We go in there and battle like men! For the Exploration Center!" Noibat must be trying to convince him that real men cry, because he's started bawling, quite audibly, even over the racket we're making.

"Just…a little…more" Skitty grunts between her Fury Swipes. The crack grows, spiderwebbing across the glass, until it finally, mercifully, shattering, pieces flying everywhere, scattering around our feet. Skitty snatches the pokeballs, "I got them! Go go go!" We run, each holding a pokeball in our mouth. On our way out, I manage to swipe my bag too—no reason they should keep that or the rest of its contents either.

As we bolt past the entrance, leaving the history of the Center behind, I see Flittle trying and failing to peel Noibat off of and Clobbopus. "Don't worry about me just check the—" Clobbopus stops when he sees us. "Skitty?" "Noibat! Let's go!" "Noibat!?" Everyone's shouting at once, but I just focus on running. We hurry through the long, central hallway, then rush up through the trap door, slamming it behind us into the shocked faces of our friends below. Noibat uses his Psychic to warp the entrance of the door, forming a makeshift seal.

But how long will it hold? I can already hear powerful moves chipping away at it from below, punctuated by grunts and curses.

"C'mon!" Skitty yells, climbing into our original bag, which has been strewn carelessly at the entrance, trinkets pouring out. I guess Flittle left here in a hurry, probably upon hearing Noibat's shrieks and cries. Just as I climb in, Noibat seals it and hoists us up, hurrying through the twists and turns of the hall and eventually out through the tree's entrance.

We're moving quickly, and after a few minutes I'm hearing sounds from the Center again. Noibat whispers, barely audible, to let us know we're almost back at the lobby. Skitty and I breathe heavily, side by side, each holding a pokeball. We carefully place them in my bag.

I can't believe we got them back. Have we…actually done it? Are we going to get away with it…at least for now? I feel incredibly guilty—we left the Artifacts Wing in a terrible state, but…could it be?

The shrill cry from Flittle tells me it isn't.

"Cr-criminals! Thieves! Stop that Noibat! It's Team Starburst!"

A brief silence. A few confused murmurs, then chaos erupts.

Noibat moves us faster, but something tugs at the bag. We spill out amidst the remaining trinkets, exposed to the Center in all our glory.

There's yelling. Errant moves. Everyone's trying to grab at us, take my bag, or just cause some kind of harm. A voice shrieks for Lurantis. We're trying to get to the door, but there's too much confusion. I barely know which way is up.

Then everything suddenly stops. Just for a moment.

For the first time since tumbling out of the bag, I get the chance to look around, stupefied. Looking up beyond the lights of the Center, I notice it's nighttime.

Oh no…we've been too long. We should have been back at the cave by now, pokeballs in hand, safe and sound. I realize this in the moment of peace because from across the ground floor, just before the mob starts again, I meet eyes with Serperior.

—

Well, it had got dark.

I had creeped up to the Center, half buried in the twigs and leaves littering the forest floor. Looking, listening for anything.

A million thoughts we're running through my mind. They've been arrested. They haven't had enough time. They returned to the cave and found me missing, and are going to return to the Center and get in trouble that I put them in and—

Focus

Somehow I knew I needed to be here, waiting. Something about it…it just felt like they weren't going to make it back. I guess staying behind was a good call after all. Although I'll never admit it to that little menace—she'd never let me live it down.

As the night became darker and stars started dotting the sky, my suspicions were eventually proven correct.

The formerly calm, quiet, relaxed atmosphere of the Center had erupted in shouts and screams. I even saw some fire pour out of the entranceway.

My cue to intervene. I just wasn't sure how.

But I couldn't just wait there either, it was evidently them, being caught, right at that moment. Even though I suspected as much, it all happened so fast. And the longer I wait to act…

So I hatched a plan. It wasn't one of my best, I'll admit, but I was never well-renowned for my planning. What I'm best at, what Gwen and I always used to win battles, was my impressive agility, if I do say so myself. I approached the Center from the side. I knew that once I was spotted, it was going to be all systems go.

As I creeped across the threshold, time stopped for the briefest of moments.

I catch Gwen's panicked eyes for a second. She's got her bag slung across her back.

They—they've actually done it!

Oh, they're certainly done it alright, now the whole Center is charging my way. It seems my reputation precedes me.

Gwen, Skitty, and Noibat rush to me as I weave through the crowd, dodging as many attacks as possible, although I can't fully ignore the several that still land. Reaching out with my vines, I manage to grab the three of them. We're out the door a moment later, the rest of the crowd in close pursuit.

We need to move…to go somewhere…but where?

We can't go back to Noibat's cave, they'll just follow us and then we'll be cornered. The town is a no-go as well; it's far too close and crowded (I still shudder when I recall my last experience there)…so that leaves…uh…

"Hey. Hey! Anyone in there?" I feel something tugging at one of my vines. "You just gonna stand there or—" "Skitty, just tell me where to go!" I'm once again losing my patience. How she can find a way to throw sass at a time like this, I'll never know. I start heading in a random direction, just to put some distance between us and the Center.

"Ok fine, calm down! Ok, turn left before you bring us back to town." She continues giving directions, and the crowd and cries behind us steadily grow quieter. Eventually the sparse trees and paths give way to houses.

"Skitty? Where are we going?" Gwen asks. A pause, "…to my parents'"